Access point handover method in wireless communications, network control node, and user equipment

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the present invention relate to an access point handover method in wireless communications, a network control node, and user equipment. The method includes: when user equipment is handed over to a target base station, obtaining AP information of a target AP having an association relationship with the target base station; and sending a first indication message to the user equipment, where the first indication message includes the AP information, and the first indication message is used to instruct the user equipment to perform AP handover according to the AP information.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of International Application No.PCT/CN2015/089819, filed on Sep. 17, 2015, which claims priority toChinese Patent Application No. 201410531123.8, filed on Oct. 10, 2014.The disclosures of the aforementioned applications are herebyincorporated by reference in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to the field of wireless communications,and in particular, to an access point handover method in wirelesscommunications, a network control node, and user equipment.

BACKGROUND

A current trend is integration (collocation site) between a cellularbase station and a WiFi wireless access point (Access Point, “AP” forshort). On one hand, the AP can share various resources (power supply, abackhaul network, and the like) of the base station; on the other hand,the AP can offload data traffic from the base station. The cellular basestation is integrated with the AP, that is, the cellular base stationand the AP form an association relationship. This associationrelationship may be that one base station corresponds to one AP, or maybe that one base station corresponds to multiple APs.

A current AP handover method is: A client sends, to a background server,base station information of a cell to which the client belongs, and thebackground server recommends, to the client according to the receivedbase station information, an AP to which user equipment can be handedover; or when user equipment finds that a currently connected AP isunavailable, the user equipment searches to find a new connectable AP.Consequently, according to these methods, corresponding AP handovercannot be performed in a timely manner after user equipment is handedover to a target base station, or because an AP to which user equipmentis handed over does not have an association relationship with a basestation, the AP to which the user equipment is handed over is invalid.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides an access point handover method inwireless communications, a network control node, and user equipment, sothat the user equipment can be handed over to a valid AP in a moretimely and accurate manner.

According to a first aspect, an access point handover method in wirelesscommunications is provided, where the method includes: when userequipment is handed over to a target base station, obtaining accesspoint AP information of a target AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station; and sending a first indication message tothe user equipment, where the first indication message includes the APinformation, and the first indication message is used to instruct theuser equipment to perform AP handover according to the AP information.

With reference to the first aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner of the first aspect, the method further includes: determining abase station type of the target base station; and the sending a firstindication message to the user equipment includes: when the base stationtype of the target base station is a micro base station, sending thefirst indication message to the user equipment.

With reference to the first aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the first aspect, in a second possible implementation mannerof the first aspect, the sending a first indication message to the userequipment includes: sending the first indication message to the userequipment by using the target base station.

With reference to the first aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the first aspect, in a third possible implementation manner ofthe first aspect, the sending a first indication message to the userequipment includes: when the user equipment maintains a communicationconnection to an AP from which the user equipment is handed over,sending the first indication message to the user equipment by using theAP from which the user equipment is handed over.

With reference to any one of the first aspect, or the first to the thirdpossible implementation manners of the first aspect, in a fourthpossible implementation manner of the first aspect, the method furtherincludes: sending a second indication message to the AP from which theuser equipment is handed over, where the second indication message isused to instruct the AP, from which the user equipment is handed over,to send a communication key between the AP from which the user equipmentis handed over and the user equipment to the target AP, so that thetarget AP establishes a communication connection to the user equipmentaccording to the communication key.

With reference to any one of the first aspect, or the first to thefourth possible implementation manners of the first aspect, in a fifthpossible implementation manner of the first aspect, the AP informationincludes at least one of a media access control MAC address of thetarget AP or identification information of the target AP.

With reference to any one of the first aspect, or the first to the fifthpossible implementation manners of the first aspect, in a sixth possibleimplementation manner of the first aspect, the target AP having anassociation relationship with the target base station includes thetarget AP integrated with the target base station.

According to a second aspect, an access point handover method inwireless communications is provided, where the method includes: afterbeing handed over to a target base station, receiving a first indicationmessage sent by a network control node, where the first indicationmessage is used to instruct user equipment to perform AP handover, andthe first indication message includes AP information of a target APhaving an association relationship with the target base station; andperforming AP handover according to the first indication message.

With reference to the second aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner of the second aspect, the receiving a first indication messagesent by a network control node includes: receiving the first indicationmessage that is sent by the network control node when a base stationtype of the target base station is a micro base station.

With reference to the second aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the second aspect, in a second possible implementation mannerof the second aspect, the receiving a first indication message sent by anetwork control node includes: receiving the first indication messagesent by the network control node by using the target base station.

With reference to the second aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the second aspect, in a third possible implementation mannerof the second aspect, the receiving a first indication message sent by anetwork control node includes: when maintaining a communicationconnection to an AP from which the user equipment is handed over,receiving the first indication message sent by the network control nodeby using the AP from which the user equipment is handed over.

With reference to any one of the second aspect, or the first to thethird possible implementation manners of the second aspect, in a fourthpossible implementation manner of the second aspect, the AP informationincludes at least one of a media access control MAC address of thetarget AP or identification information of the target AP.

With reference to any one of the second aspect, or the first to thefourth possible implementation manners of the second aspect, in a fifthpossible implementation manner of the second aspect, the target APhaving an association relationship with the target base station includesthe target AP integrated with the target base station.

According to a third aspect, a network control node in a wirelesscommunications network is provided, where the network control nodeincludes: an obtaining module, configured to: when user equipment ishanded over to a target base station, obtain access point AP informationof a target AP having an association relationship with the target basestation; and a first sending module, configured to send a firstindication message to the user equipment, where the first indicationmessage includes the AP information obtained by the obtaining module,and the first indication message is used to instruct the user equipmentto perform AP handover according to the AP information.

With reference to the third aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner of the third aspect, the network control node further includes adetermining module, configured to determine a base station type of thetarget base station; and the first sending module is specificallyconfigured to: when the determining module determines that the basestation type of the target base station is a micro base station, sendthe first indication message to the user equipment.

With reference to the third aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the third aspect, in a second possible implementation mannerof the third aspect, the first sending module is specifically configuredto send the first indication message to the user equipment by using thetarget base station.

With reference to the third aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the third aspect, in a third possible implementation manner ofthe third aspect, the first sending module is specifically configuredto: when the user equipment maintains a communication connection to anAP from which the user equipment is handed over, send the firstindication message to the user equipment by using the AP from which theuser equipment is handed over.

With reference to any one of the third aspect or the first to the thirdpossible implementation manners of the third aspect, in a fourthpossible implementation manner of the third aspect, the network controlnode further includes a second sending module, configured to send asecond indication message to the AP from which the user equipment ishanded over, where the second indication message is used to instruct theAP, from which the user equipment is handed over, to send acommunication key between the AP from which the user equipment is handedover and the user equipment to the target AP, so that the target APestablishes a communication connection to the user equipment accordingto the communication key.

With reference to any one of the third aspect, or the first to thefourth possible implementation manners of the third aspect, in a fifthpossible implementation manner of the third aspect, the AP informationobtained by the obtaining module includes at least one of a media accesscontrol MAC address of the target AP or identification information ofthe target AP.

With reference to any one of the third aspect, or the first to the fifthpossible implementation manners of the third aspect, in a sixth possibleimplementation manner of the third aspect, the target AP having anassociation relationship with the target base station includes thetarget AP integrated with the target base station.

According to a fourth aspect, user equipment is provided, where the userequipment includes: a receiving module, configured to: after the userequipment is handed over to a target base station, receive a firstindication message sent by a network control node, where the firstindication message is used to instruct the user equipment to perform APhandover, and the first indication message includes AP information of atarget AP having an association relationship with the target basestation; and a handover module, configured to perform AP handoveraccording to the first indication message received by the receivingmodule.

With reference to the fourth aspect, in a first possible implementationmanner of the fourth aspect, the receiving module is specificallyconfigured to receive the first indication message that is sent by thenetwork control node when a base station type of the target base stationis a micro base station.

With reference to the fourth aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the fourth aspect, in a second possible implementation mannerof the fourth aspect, the receiving module is specifically configured toreceive the first indication message sent by the network control node byusing the target base station.

With reference to the fourth aspect or the first possible implementationmanner of the fourth aspect, in a third possible implementation mannerof the fourth aspect, the receiving module is specifically configuredto: when the user equipment maintains a communication connection to anAP from which the user equipment is handed over, receive the firstindication message sent by the network control node by using the AP fromwhich the user equipment is handed over.

With reference to any one of the fourth aspect, or the first to thethird possible implementation manners of the fourth aspect, in a fourthpossible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the AP informationreceived by the receiving module includes at least one of a media accesscontrol MAC address of the target AP or identification information ofthe target AP.

With reference to any one of the fourth aspect, or the first to thefourth possible implementation manners of the fourth aspect, in a fifthpossible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the target APhaving an association relationship with the target base station includesthe target AP integrated with the target base station.

Based on the foregoing technical solutions, according to the accesspoint handover method in wireless communications, the network controlnode, and the user equipment that are in embodiments of the presentinvention, after the user equipment is handed over to a target basestation, according to an association relationship between the targetbase station and an AP, a network control device instructs the userequipment to be handed over to an AP associated with the target basestation. Therefore, unavailability of a currently connected AP caused byhandover of user equipment to a target base station can be avoided, theuser equipment can be handed over to a valid AP associated with the basestation in a more timely and accurate manner, and user experience can beimproved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the presentinvention more clearly, the following briefly describes the accompanyingdrawings required for describing the embodiments of the presentinvention. Apparently, the accompanying drawings in the followingdescription show merely some embodiments of the present invention, and aperson of ordinary skill in the art may still derive other drawings fromthese accompanying drawings without creative efforts.

FIG. 1 is a schematic architecture diagram of an application scenarioaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of an access point handover method inwireless communications according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is another schematic flowchart of an access point handover methodin wireless communications according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is still another schematic flowchart of an access point handovermethod in wireless communications according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic flowchart of an access point handover method inwireless communications according to another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of a network control node in awireless communications network according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 7 is another schematic block diagram of a network control node in awireless communications network according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 8 is still another schematic block diagram of a network controlnode in a wireless communications network according to an embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram of user equipment according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a network control node in awireless communications network according to another embodiment of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 11 is another schematic block diagram of user equipment accordingto an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following clearly describes the technical solutions in theembodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanyingdrawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Apparently, thedescribed embodiments are a part rather than all of the embodiments ofthe present invention. All other embodiments obtained by a person ofordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the presentinvention without creative efforts shall fall within the protectionscope of the present invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic architecture diagram of an applicationscenario according to an embodiment of the present invention. In thisembodiment of the present invention, cellular base stations may beclassified into a macro base station and a micro base station. The macrobase station has a wide coverage area, allows a large quantity of usersto access, and provides user bandwidth with a specific limitation, whilethe micro base station has a much smaller coverage area and provideshigh-speed services with large bandwidth for a user.

Specifically, in FIG. 1, 101 represents a macro base station, and themacro base station integrates an AP. 102, 103, 104, and 105 allrepresent micro base stations controlled by the macro base station 101,and these micro base stations each also integrate an AP. 106 representsuser equipment UE1, which is connected to the micro base station 102 andthe AP integrated with the micro base station. 107 represents userequipment UE2, which is connected to the macro base station 101 and theAP integrated with the macro base station. 108 represents a networkcontrol node, and the network control node is configured to controlhandover of user equipment between different base stations, for example,may control the user equipment 106 to be handed over from the currentlyconnected micro base station 102 to the micro base station 103.

The network control node may have different product forms in differentnetworks, and may be a radio network controller (Radio NetworkController, “RNC” for short), or may be a mobility management entity(Mobility Management Entity, “MME” for short), or even may be a moduleintegrated and deployed in a base station.

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic flowchart of an access point handovermethod 200 in wireless communications according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. The method 200 may be performed by a network controlnode. As shown in FIG. 2, the method 200 includes the following steps:

S210: When user equipment is handed over to a target base station,obtain AP information of a target AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station.

S220: Send a first indication message to the user equipment, where thefirst indication message includes the AP information, and the firstindication message is used to instruct the user equipment to perform APhandover according to the AP information.

Specifically, due to location movement or another reason, the userequipment is handed over from an original base station to the targetbase station. After determining that the user equipment is handed overto the target base station, the network control node may determine thetarget AP having an association relationship with the target basestation, and may further obtain the AP information of the target AP. Thenetwork control node may send the first indication message including theAP information to the user equipment. The first indication message maybe used to instruct the user equipment to perform AP handover.

Therefore, according to the access point handover method in wirelesscommunications in this embodiment of the present invention, after userequipment is handed over to a target base station, according to anassociation relationship between the target base station and an AP, anetwork control node instructs the user equipment to be handed over toan AP associated with the target base station. Therefore, unavailabilityof a currently connected AP caused by handover of user equipment to atarget base station can be avoided, the user equipment can be handedover to a valid AP associated with the base station in a more timely andaccurate manner, and user experience can be improved.

In step S210, when determining that the user equipment is handed over tothe target base station, the network control node obtains the APinformation of the target AP having an association relationship with thetarget base station. In this embodiment of the present invention, due tolocation movement or another reason, the user equipment is handed overfrom an original base station to the target base station, and a handoverprocess may follow a signaling process specified in an existing 3GPPstandard. After completing the handover to the target base station, theuser equipment may send an acknowledgement message to the networkcontrol node. The network control node determines, by using theacknowledgement message, that the user equipment has been handed over tothe target base station, or detects, by using another method, the userequipment is handed over to the target base station. The presentinvention is not limited thereto.

In this embodiment of the present invention, after determining that theuser equipment completes base station handover, the network control nodemay obtain, by querying an association relationship between a targetbase station to which the user equipment is handed over and an AP, theAP information of the target AP having an association relationship withthe target base station. This association relationship may refer tointegration between a base station and an AP, so that the AP can sharevarious resources (power supply, a backhaul network, and the like) ofthe base station, and can further offload data traffic from the basestation. The network control node determines the AP informationaccording to the target AP.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the AP information is usedto indicate the target AP, the AP information has a correspondence withthe target AP, and the corresponding target AP may be determinedaccording to the AP information. Specifically, the AP information mayinclude at least one of a media access control (Media Access Control,“MAC” for short) address or identification information of the target AP.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the network control nodestores related information of base stations managed by the networkcontrol node, and may further store information of APs having anassociation relationship with these base stations. This information maybe stored in a form of an associated data table, as shown in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Associated record Base station number AP number Status (status)1 01 05 44 45 53 54 00 00 Y 2 01 98 44 55 33 54 02 00 N . . . . . . . .. . . .

As shown in Table 1, a base station number is a cell identity (CellIdentity, “CI” for short) specified in 3GPP standard TS 23.003 Release12 and may be a number, having a length of two bytes, defined by atelecommunication operator. An AP number may be a MAC address, having alength of six bytes, of an AP, and the MAC address is globally unique.There is a record in the foregoing table for each pair of associatedbase stations and AP. If both devices work normally, a state is Y; if adevice such as an associated AP fails temporarily, a state is N,representing unavailability of a currently associated AP. The networkcontrol node determines a target AP having an association relationshipwith a target base station by using the table, and sends a MAC addressof the target AP to the user equipment.

In step S220, after determining the target AP associated with the targetbase station, the network control node may send the first indicationmessage including the AP information of the target AP to the userequipment. The first indication message is used to instruct the userequipment to perform AP handover. Specifically, when a target basestation has multiple associated APs, the network control node mayselect, for sending, an AP whose AP state is Y, or may select, accordingto a busy/idle state of each AP, an AP currently in an idle state, andsend the first indication message including the AP information of thetarget AP to the user equipment, to instruct the user equipment to behanded over to the target AR In addition, when all states of multipletarget APs are Y, the network control node may send a first indicationmessage including AP information of the multiple target APs to the userequipment, and the user equipment may select, according to a situationof the user equipment, one AP in the first indication message toconnect. The present invention is not limited thereto.

Optionally, in step S220, the network control node may send the firstindication message to the user equipment by using the target basestation, to instruct the user equipment to perform AP handover.Specifically, the network control node may send the first indicationmessage to the target base station. After the target base stationreceives the first indication message, the target base station sends thefirst indication message to the user equipment, to instruct the userequipment to perform AP handover.

Optionally, in step S220, when the user equipment maintains acommunication connection to an AP from which the user equipment ishanded over, the network control node may send the first indicationmessage to the user equipment by using the AP from which the userequipment is handed over. Specifically, the network control node maydetermine whether the AP from which the user equipment is handed overmaintains the communication connection to the user equipment, and whendetermining that the user equipment maintains the communicationconnection to the AP from which the user equipment is handed over, sendthe first indication message including the AP information by using theAP from which the user equipment is handed over. After receiving thefirst indication message, the AP from which the user equipment is handedover sends the first indication message to the user equipment, toinstruct the user equipment to perform AP handover.

Therefore, according to the access point handover method in wirelesscommunications in this embodiment of the present invention, after userequipment is handed over to a target base station, according to anassociation relationship between the target base station and an AP, anetwork control node instructs the user equipment to be handed over toan AP associated with the target base station. Therefore, unavailabilityof a currently connected AP caused by handover of user equipment to atarget base station can be avoided, the user equipment can be handedover to a valid AP associated with the base station in a more timely andaccurate manner, and user experience can be improved.

FIG. 3 illustrates another schematic flowchart of the access pointhandover method in wireless communications according to this embodimentof the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the method 200 furtherincludes the following step:

S230: Determine a base station type of the target base station.

Optionally, the sending a first indication message to the user equipmentin step S220 of the method 200 further includes:

S221: When the base station type of the target base station is a microbase station, send the first indication message including the APinformation to the user equipment.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the base station type mayinclude a micro base station and a macro base station, and may furtherinclude a medium base station or another type. The present invention isdescribed by using an example in which the base station type includes amicro base station and a macro base station. A micro base station isgenerally deployed at a user-intensive place and managed by a macro basestation. A macro base station manages and schedules multiple micro basestations to ensure a maximum overall system capacity in a managementscope of the macro base station. A coverage area of the macro basestation may generally reach a few kilometers, while a coverage area ofthe micro base station is generally a few hundreds of meters. Thecoverage area of the micro base station is very close to a coverage areaof an AP. Therefore, in this embodiment of the present invention, thenetwork control node sends an AP having an association relationship witha micro base station and an AP having an association relationship with amacro base station to the user equipment for comparison, the AP havingan association relationship with the micro base station can moreaccurately reflect a real physical state of a network and has morepractical value.

Specifically, the base station type may be determined according to acoverage area of a base station. Optionally, the base station type maybe determined according to a quantity of users. The present invention isnot limited thereto. For example, as defined in 3GPP standard TS 36.423Release 12, according to a coverage area of a base station, basestations may be classified into various types such as a pico cell, asmall cell, a medium cell, and a large cell. Among them, the pico cellor the small cell may be included in the micro base station in thisembodiment of the present invention.

In step S230, to more accurately perform handover to a valid target AP,the network control node may further determine the base station type,and when determining that the base station type of the target basestation is a micro base station, send the first indication messageincluding the AP information to the user equipment. Specifically, afterthe user equipment is handed over to the target base station, thenetwork control node determines the AP information of the target APassociated with the target base station, and sends the first indicationmessage including the AP information of the target AP to the userequipment. The network control node may determine an associated targetAP when the target base station is a macro base station, or maydetermine an associated target base station when the target base stationis a micro base station. However, because a coverage area of a microbase station is very close to a coverage area of an AP, an associationrelationship between the micro base station and the AP more accuratelyreflects a real physical state of a network. When determining that thebase station type of the target base station is a micro base station,the network control node considers that the target AP associated withthe target base station can more accurately reflect a real physicalstate of a network.

Therefore, according to the access point handover method in wirelesscommunications in this embodiment of the present invention, after userequipment is handed over to a target base station, a network controlnode obtains AP information of a target AP having an associationrelationship with the target base station, and when the base station isa micro base station, sends a first indication message including the APinformation to the user equipment, to instruct the user equipment toperform AP handover according to the AP information. Therefore,unavailability of a currently connected AP caused by handover of userequipment to a target base station can be avoided, the user equipmentcan be handed over to a valid AP in a more timely and accurate manner,and user experience can be improved.

Optionally, FIG. 4 illustrates still another schematic flowchart of theaccess point handover method in wireless communications according tothis embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the method200 further includes the following step:

S240: Send a second indication message to an AP from which the userequipment is handed over, where the second indication message is used toinstruct the AP, from which the user equipment is handed over, to send acommunication key between the AP from which the user equipment is handedover and the user equipment to the target AP, so that the target APestablishes a communication connection to the user equipment accordingto the communication key.

In this embodiment of the present invention, after the network controlnode sends the first indication message including the AP information tothe user equipment, the user equipment may establish, according to theAP information, a communication key with the target AP when being handedover to the target AP. Optionally, the network control node may furthersend the second indication message to the AP that is connected to theuser equipment before the handover, to instruct the AP, from which theuser equipment is handed over, to send the communication key between theAP from which the user equipment is handed over and the user equipmentto the target AP, so that the AP more quickly establishes acommunication connection to the user equipment according to thecommunication key.

Specifically, the second indication message may include the APinformation of the target AP. The AP from which the user equipment ishanded over determines the target AP according to the AP information andsends the communication key to the target AR

Therefore, according to the access point handover method in wirelesscommunications in this embodiment of the present invention, after userequipment is handed over to a target base station, according to anassociation relationship between the target base station and an AP, anetwork control node instructs the user equipment to be handed over toan AP associated with the target base station. Therefore, unavailabilityof a currently connected AP caused by handover of user equipment to atarget base station can be avoided, the user equipment can be handedover to a valid AP associated with the base station in a more timely andaccurate manner, and user experience can be improved.

With reference to FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, the foregoing describes in detailthe access point handover method in wireless communications according tothis embodiment of the present invention from a perspective of thenetwork control node. The following will describe, with reference toFIG. 5, an access point handover method in wireless communicationsaccording to another embodiment of the present invention from aperspective of user equipment.

As shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a schematic flowchart of an access pointhandover method 300 in wireless communications according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. The method 300 is executed by userequipment. As shown in FIG. 5, the method 300 includes the followingsteps:

S310: After being handed over to a target base station, receive a firstindication message sent by a network control node, where the firstindication message is used to instruct the user equipment to perform APhandover, and the first indication message includes AP information of atarget AP having an association relationship with the target basestation.

S320: Perform AP handover according to the first indication message.

Specifically, due to location movement or another reason, the userequipment is handed over from an original base station to the targetbase station. After the user equipment is handed over to the target basestation, the network control node may determine the AP information ofthe target AP having an association relationship with the target basestation, and sends the first indication message including the APinformation to the user equipment. The user equipment receives the firstindication message and performs AP handover according to the APinformation in the first indication message.

Therefore, according to the access point handover method in wirelesscommunications in this embodiment of the present invention, after userequipment is handed over to a target base station, according to aninstruction of a network control node, the user equipment is handed overto an AP having an association relationship with the target basestation. Therefore, unavailability of a currently connected AP caused byhandover of user equipment to a target base station can be avoided, theuser equipment can be handed over to a valid AP associated with the basestation in a more timely and accurate manner, and user experience can beimproved.

In this embodiment of the present invention, due to location movement oranother reason, the user equipment is handed over from an original basestation to the target base station, and a handover process may follow asignaling process specified by an existing 3GPP standard. Aftercompleting the handover to the target base station, the user equipmentmay send an acknowledgement message to the network control node. Theacknowledgement message is used by the network control node to determinethat the user equipment has completed the handover. The presentinvention is not limited thereto.

In step S310, after the user equipment is handed over to the target basestation, the user equipment receives the first indication message sentby the network control node. The first indication message includes theAP information of the target AP having an association relationship withthe target base station and is used to instruct the user equipment toperform AP handover. The AP information may be used to indicate thetarget AP. Optionally, the AP information may include at least one of aMAC address or identification information of an AP.

Optionally, in step S310, the first indication message may be sent bythe network control node when a base station type of the target basestation is a micro base station. After the user equipment is handed overto the target base station, the user equipment receives the firstindication message, including the AP information, sent to the userequipment by the network control node after obtaining the AP informationof the target AP having an association relationship with the target basestation and determining that the base station type of the target basestation is a micro base station. Because a coverage area of a micro basestation is very close to a coverage area of an AP, an associationrelationship between the micro base station and the AP more accuratelyreflects a real physical state of a network. Therefore, unavailabilityof a currently connected AP caused by handover of user equipment to atarget base station can be avoided, the user equipment can be handedover to a valid AP in a more timely and accurate manner, and userexperience can be improved.

Optionally, in step S310, the user equipment may receive the firstindication message sent by the network control node by using the targetbase station. The network control node sends the first indicationmessage including the AP information to the target base station, and theuser equipment receives the first indication message sent by the targetbase station.

Optionally, in step S310, when maintaining a communication connection toan AP from which the user equipment is handed over, the user equipmentmay receive the first indication message sent by the network controlnode by using the AP from which the user equipment is handed over. Thenetwork control node may send, when determining that the AP from whichthe user equipment is handed over still maintains a communicationconnection to the user equipment, the first indication message includingthe AP information to the AP from which the user equipment is handedover, and the user equipment receives the first indication message sentby the AP from which the user equipment is handed over.

In step S320, after receiving the first indication message including theAP information, the user equipment determines the target AP according tothe AP information and is handed over to the AP. Optionally, the APinformation may include at least one of a MAC address or identificationinformation of the target AP. When the AP information involves multipletarget APs, the user equipment may select, according to a currentsituation of the user equipment, one AP to perform handover. The presentinvention is not limited thereto.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the user equipment may behanded over to the target AP according to the AP information, and theuser equipment may re-establish a communication key with the target APto connect to the target AR Optionally, the AP from which the userequipment is handed over may send a communication key between the APfrom which the user equipment is handed over and the user equipment tothe target AP, so that the user equipment can more quickly establish acommunication connection to the target AP by using the communicationkey.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the user equipment mayestablish a communication connection to the target AP while maintaininga communication connection to the AP from which the user equipment ishanded over, which implements dual connections, and further implements,by using a backup during data transmission, seamless handover from awireless connection between the AP from which the user equipment ishanded over and the user equipment to a wireless connection between theuser equipment and the target AP.

It should be understood that interaction between the network controlnode and the user equipment, related characteristics, functions, and thelike described from a perspective of user equipment are corresponding tothose described from a perspective of a network control node. Forbrevity, details are not described herein again.

It should be understood that sequence numbers of the foregoing processesdo not mean execution sequences in the embodiments of the presentinvention. The execution sequences of the processes should be determinedaccording to functions and internal logic of the processes, and shouldnot be construed as any limitation on the implementation processes ofthe embodiments of the present invention.

Therefore, according to the access point handover method in wirelesscommunications in this embodiment of the present invention, after beinghanded over to a target base station, according to an instruction of anetwork control node, user equipment may be handed over to an AP havingan association relationship with the target base station. Therefore,unavailability of a currently connected AP caused by handover of userequipment to a target base station can be avoided, the user equipmentcan be handed over to a valid AP associated with the base station in amore timely and accurate manner, and user experience can be improved.

With reference to FIG. 2 to FIG. 5, the foregoing describes in detailthe access point handover method in wireless communications according tothe embodiments of the present invention. The following will describe,with reference to FIG. 6 to FIG. 9, a network control node in a wirelesscommunications network according to an embodiment of the presentinvention and user equipment according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic block diagram of a network control node400 in a wireless communications network according to an embodiment ofthe present invention. As shown in FIG. 6, the network control node 400includes:

an obtaining module 410, configured to: when user equipment is handedover to a target base station, obtain access point AP information of atarget AP having an association relationship with the target basestation; and

a first sending module 420, configured to: send a first indicationmessage including the AP information obtained by the obtaining module410 to the user equipment, where the first indication message is used toinstruct the user equipment to perform AP handover according to the APinformation.

Therefore, according to the network control node in a wirelesscommunications network in this embodiment of the present invention,after user equipment is handed over to a target base station, accordingto an association relationship between the target base station and anAP, the user equipment is instructed to be handed over to an APassociated with the target base station. Therefore, unavailability of acurrently connected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a targetbase station can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to avalid AP associated with the base station in a more timely and accuratemanner, and user experience can be improved.

In this embodiment of the present invention, after the user equipment ishanded over to the target base station, the obtaining module 410 of thenetwork control node obtains the AP information of the target AP havingan association relationship with the target base station. Optionally,the AP information may include at least one of a MAC address oridentification information of an AP. The first sending module 420 of thenetwork control node sends the first indication message including the APinformation obtained by the obtaining module 410 to the user equipment,where the first indication message is used to instruct the userequipment to perform AP handover according to the AP information.

Optionally, in this embodiment of the present invention, the firstsending module 420 may specifically send, by using the target basestation, the first indication message including the AP informationobtained by the obtaining module 410 to the user equipment.

Optionally, in this embodiment of the present invention, when the userequipment maintains a communication connection to an AP from which theuser equipment is handed over, the first sending module 420 may send, byusing the AP from which the user equipment is handed over, the firstindication message including the AP information obtained by theobtaining module 410 to the user equipment.

Optionally, FIG. 7 illustrates another schematic block diagram of thenetwork control node in a wireless communications network according tothis embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 7, thenetwork control node 400 further includes:

a determining module 430, configured to determine a base station type ofthe target base station.

The first sending module 420 is specifically configured to: when thedetermining module 430 determines that the base station type of thetarget base station is a micro base station, send the first indicationmessage including the AP information obtained by the obtaining module410 to the user equipment.

In this embodiment of the present invention, after user equipment ishanded over to a target base station, an obtaining module 410 of anetwork control node obtains AP information of a target AP having anassociation relationship with the target base station; a determiningmodule 430 determines a base station type of the target base station;when the determining module 430 determines that the base station type ofthe target base station is a micro base station, a first sending module420 of the network control node sends a first indication messageincluding the AP information obtained by the obtaining module 410 to theuser equipment, where the first indication message is used to instructthe user equipment to perform AP handover according to the APinformation. Because a coverage area of a micro base station is veryclose to a coverage area of an AP, an association relationship betweenthe micro base station and the AP more accurately reflects a realphysical state of a network. Therefore, unavailability of a currentlyconnected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a target basestation can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to a validAP in a more timely and accurate manner, and user experience can beimproved.

In this embodiment of the present invention, optionally, FIG. 8illustrates another schematic block diagram of the network control nodein a wireless communications network according to this embodiment of thepresent invention. As shown in FIG. 8, the network control node 400further includes:

a second sending module 440, configured to send a second indicationmessage to the AP from which the user equipment is handed over, wherethe second indication message is used to instruct the AP, from which theuser equipment is handed over, to send a communication key between theAP from which the user equipment is handed over and the user equipmentto the target AP, so that the target AP establishes a communicationconnection to the user equipment according to the communication key.

Specifically, in this embodiment of the present invention, whenperforming AP handover according to the received first indicationmessage, the user equipment may establish a communication connection tothe target AP by re-establishing a communication key. Optionally, thenetwork control node may send the second indication message to the AP,from which the user equipment is handed over, by using the secondsending module 440. The second indication message is used to instructthe AP, from which the user equipment is handed over, to send acommunication key between the AP from which the user equipment is handedover and the user equipment to the target AP, so that the target AP morequickly establishes a communication connection to the user equipmentaccording to the communication key.

It should be understood that the network control node 400 according tothis embodiment of the present invention may correspondingly execute theaccess point handover method 200 in wireless communications in theforegoing embodiment of the present invention, and the foregoing andother operations and/or functions of the modules in the network controlnode 400 are separately intended to implement the correspondingprocedures of the method in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4. For brevity, details arenot described herein again.

Therefore, according to the network control node in a wirelesscommunications network in this embodiment of the present invention,after user equipment is handed over to a target base station, accordingto an association relationship between the target base station and anAP, the user equipment is instructed to be handed over to an APassociated with the target base station. Therefore, unavailability of acurrently connected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a targetbase station can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to avalid AP associated with the base station in a more timely and accuratemanner, and user experience can be improved.

FIG. 9 illustrates a schematic block diagram of user equipment accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9, the userequipment 500 includes:

a receiving module 510, configured to: after the user equipment ishanded over to a target base station, receive a first indication messagesent by a network control node, where the first indication message isused to instruct the user equipment to perform AP handover, and thefirst indication message includes AP information of a target AP havingan association relationship with the target base station; and

a handover module 520, configured to perform AP handover according tothe first indication message received by the receiving module 510.

In this embodiment of the present invention, after the user equipment ishanded over to the target base station, the receiving module 510receives the first indication message sent by the network control node.The first indication message includes the AP information determined bythe network control node according to the target AP associated with thetarget base station. Optionally, the AP information includes at leastone of an MAC address or identification information of the AP, and thefirst indication message is used to instruct the user equipment toperform AP handover. After the user equipment receives the firstindication message, the handover module 520 performs AP handoveraccording to the AP information.

Therefore, according to the user equipment in this embodiment of thepresent invention, after being handed over to a target base station,according to an instruction of a network control node, the userequipment may be handed over to an AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station. Therefore, unavailability of a currentlyconnected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a target basestation can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to a validAP associated with the base station in a more timely and accuratemanner, and user experience can be improved.

Optionally, in this embodiment of the present invention, after the userequipment is handed over to the target base station, the receivingmodule 510 is further specifically configured to receive the firstindication message sent by the network control node when a base stationtype of the target base station is a micro base station. The firstindication message includes the AP information of the target AP havingan association relationship with the target base station and is used toinstruct the user equipment to perform AP handover. The user equipmentperforms AP handover according to the first indication message by usingthe handover module 520.

Optionally, after the user equipment is handed over to the target basestation, the receiving module 510 of the user equipment may specificallyreceive the first indication message sent by the network control node byusing the target base station. Specifically, the network control nodesends the first indication message to the target base station, and tothe user equipment by using the target base station. The receivingmodule 510 of the user equipment receives the first indication message.

Optionally, when the user equipment maintains a communication connectionto an AP from which the user equipment is handed over, the receivingmodule 510 may specifically receive the first indication message sent bythe network control node by using the AP from which the user equipmentis handed over. Specifically, the network control node sends the firstindication message including the AP information of the target AP havingan association relationship with the target base station to the AP fromwhich the user equipment is handed over; the AP from which the userequipment is handed over sends the first indication message includingthe AP information to the user equipment; the receiving module 510 ofthe user equipment performs AP handover according to the AP informationafter receiving the first indication message.

It should be understood that the user equipment 500 according to thisembodiment of the present invention may correspondingly execute theaccess point handover method 300 in wireless communications in theforegoing embodiment of the present invention, and the foregoing andother operations and/or functions of the modules of the user equipment500 are separately intended to implement the corresponding procedures ofthe method in FIG. 5. For brevity, details are not described hereinagain.

Therefore, according to the user equipment in this embodiment of thepresent invention, after being handed over to a target base station,according to an instruction of a network control node, the userequipment may be handed over to an AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station. Therefore, unavailability of a currentlyconnected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a target basestation can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to a validAP associated with the base station in a more timely and accuratemanner, and user experience can be improved.

As shown in FIG. 10, an embodiment of the present invention furtherprovides a network control node 600 in a wireless communicationsnetwork. The network control node 600 includes a processor 610, a memory620, a transmitter 630, and a bus system 640. The processor 610, thememory 620, and the transmitter 630 are connected by using the bussystem 640. The memory 620 is configured to store instructions, and theprocessor 610 is configured to execute the instructions stored in thememory 620, so as to control the transmitter 630 to send a signal. Theprocessor 610 is configured to obtain AP information of a target APhaving an association relationship with a target base station afterdetermining that user equipment is handed over to the target basestation. The transmitter 630 is configured to send a first indicationmessage including the AP information to the user equipment, where thefirst indication message is used to instruct the user equipment toperform AP handover according to the AP information.

Therefore, according to the network control node in a wirelesscommunications network in this embodiment of the present invention,after user equipment is handed over to a target base station, accordingto an association relationship between the target base station and anAP, the network control node instructs the user equipment to be handedover to an AP associated with the target base station. Therefore,unavailability of a currently connected AP caused by handover of userequipment to a target base station can be avoided, the user equipmentcan be handed over to a valid AP associated with the base station in amore timely and accurate manner, and user experience can be improved.

It should be understood that, in this embodiment of the presentinvention, the processor 610 may be a central processing unit (CentralProcessing Unit, “CPU” for short), or the processor 610 may be anothergeneral purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), anapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmablegate array (FPGA) or another programmable logical device, a discretegate or transistor logical device, a discrete hardware assembly, or thelike. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or theprocessor may be any conventional processor or the like.

The memory 620 may include a read-only memory and a random accessmemory, and provide an instruction and data for the processor 610. Apart of the memory 620 may further include a non-volatile random accessmemory. For example, the memory 620 may further store device typeinformation.

In addition to a data bus, the bus system 640 may further include apower supply bus, a control bus, a status signal bus, and the like. Forclear description, various buses are denoted as the bus system 640 inthe figure.

In an implementation process, all steps of the foregoing method may becompleted by using an integrated logic circuit of hardware in theprocessor 610 or by using an instruction in a software form. The stepsof the method disclosed with reference to the foregoing embodiment ofthe present invention may be directly executed and completed by ahardware processor, or may be executed and completed by using acombination of hardware and software modules in the processor. Thesoftware module may be located in a storage medium mature in the art,such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, aprogrammable read-only memory, an electrically erasable programmablememory, or a register. The storage medium is located in the memory 620,and the processor 610 reads information from the memory 620 andcompletes the steps of the foregoing method with reference to hardwareof the processor 610. To avoid repetition, details are not describedherein again.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the processor 610 is further configured todetermine a base station type of the target base station, and whendetermining that the base station type of the target base station is amicro base station, send the first indication message including the APinformation to the user equipment.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the transmitter 630 may specifically sendthe first indication message including the AP information to the userequipment through the target base station.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the transmitter 630 may send, when theuser equipment maintains a communication connection to an AP from whichthe user equipment is handed over, the first indication messageincluding the AP information to the user equipment by using the AP fromwhich the user equipment is handed over.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the transmitter 630 is further configuredto send a second indication message to the AP from which the userequipment is handed over, where the second indication message is used toinstruct the AP, from which the user equipment is handed over, to send acommunication key between the AP from which the user equipment is handedover and the user equipment to the target AP, so that the target APestablishes a communication connection to the user equipment accordingto the communication key.

It should be understood that the network control node 600 according tothis embodiment of the present invention may correspond to the networkcontrol node 400 in the foregoing embodiment of the present inventionand may correspondingly execute the method in the foregoing embodimentof the present invention, and the foregoing and other operations and/orfunctions of the modules of the network control node 600 are separatelyintended to implement the corresponding procedures of the method in FIG.2 to FIG. 4. For brevity, details are not described herein again.

Therefore, according to the network control node in a wirelesscommunications network in this embodiment of the present invention,after user equipment is handed over to a target base station, accordingto an association relationship between the target base station and anAP, the network control node instructs the user equipment to be handedover to an AP associated with the target base station. Therefore,unavailability of a currently connected AP caused by handover of userequipment to a target base station can be avoided, the user equipmentcan be handed over to a valid AP associated with the base station in amore timely and accurate manner, and user experience can be improved.

As shown in FIG. 11, an embodiment of the present invention furtherprovides user equipment 700, where the user equipment 700 includes aprocessor 710, a memory 720, a bus system 730, and a receiver 740. Theprocessor 710, the memory 720, and the receiver 740 are connected byusing the bus system 730. The memory 720 is configured to storeinstructions, and the processor 710 is configured to execute theinstructions stored in the memory 720, so as to control the receiver 740to receive a signal. The receiver 740 is configured to: after the userequipment is handed over to a target base station, receive a firstindication message that is sent by a network control node and used toinstruct the user equipment to perform AP handover, where the firstindication message includes AP information of a target AP having anassociation relationship with the target base station. The processor 710is configured to perform AP handover according to the first indicationmessage.

Therefore, according to the user equipment in this embodiment of thepresent invention, after being handed over to a target base station,according to an instruction of a network control node, the userequipment may be handed over to an AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station. Therefore, unavailability of a currentlyconnected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a target basestation can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to a validAP associated with the base station in a more timely and accuratemanner, and user experience can be improved.

It should be understood that, in this embodiment of the presentinvention, the processor 710 may be a central processing unit (CentralProcessing Unit, “CPU” for short), or the processor 710 may be anothergeneral purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), anapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmablegate array (FPGA) or another programmable logical device, a discretegate or transistor logical device, a discrete hardware assembly, or thelike. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or theprocessor may be any conventional processor or the like.

The memory 720 may include a read-only memory and a random accessmemory, and provide an instruction and data for the processor 710. Apart of the memory 720 may further include a non-volatile random accessmemory. For example, the memory 720 may further store device typeinformation.

In addition to a data bus, the bus system 730 may further include apower supply bus, a control bus, a status signal bus, and the like. Forclear description, various buses are denoted as the bus system 730 inthe figure.

In an implementation process, all steps of the foregoing method may becompleted by using an integrated logic circuit of hardware in theprocessor 710 or by using an instruction in a software form. The stepsof the method disclosed with reference to the foregoing embodiment ofthe present invention may be directly executed and completed by ahardware processor, or may be executed and completed by using acombination of hardware and software modules in the processor. Thesoftware module may be located in a storage medium mature in the art,such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, aprogrammable read-only memory, an electrically erasable programmablememory, or a register. The storage medium is located in the memory 720,and the processor 710 reads information from the memory 720 andcompletes the steps of the foregoing method with reference to hardwareof the processor 710. To avoid repetition, details are not describedherein again.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the receiver 740 is further configured toreceive the first indication message sent by the network control nodewhen a base station type of the target base station is a micro basestation. The first indication message includes the AP information of thetarget AP having an association relationship with the target basestation and is used to instruct the user equipment to perform APhandover.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the receiver 740 is further configured toreceive the first indication message sent by the network control node byusing the target base station. Specifically, the network control nodesends the first indication message to the target base station, and theuser equipment receives the first indication message sent by the targetbase station by using the receiver 740.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the receiver 740 is further configured toreceive the first indication message sent by the network control node byusing an AP from which the user equipment is handed over. Specifically,the network control node sends the first indication message includingthe AP information of the target AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station to the AP from which the user equipment ishanded over; the AP from which the user equipment is handed over sendsthe first indication message including the AP information to the userequipment; the receiver 740 of the user equipment receives the firstindication message sent by the AP from which the user equipment ishanded over.

It should be understood that the user equipment 700 according to thisembodiment of the present invention may correspond to the user equipment500 in the foregoing embodiment of the present invention and maycorrespondingly execute the method in the foregoing embodiment of thepresent invention, and the foregoing and other operations and/orfunctions of the modules of the user equipment 700 are separatelyintended to implement the corresponding procedures of the method in FIG.5. For brevity, details are not described herein again.

Therefore, according to the user equipment in this embodiment of thepresent invention, after being handed over to a target base station,according to an instruction of a network control node, the userequipment may be handed over to an AP having an association relationshipwith the target base station. Therefore, unavailability of a currentlyconnected AP caused by handover of user equipment to a target basestation can be avoided, the user equipment can be handed over to a validAP associated with the base station in a more timely and accuratemanner, and user experience can be improved.

A person of ordinary skill in the art may be aware that, in combinationwith the examples described in the embodiments disclosed in thisspecification, units and algorithm steps may be implemented byelectronic hardware, computer software, or a combination thereof. Toclearly describe the interchangeability between the hardware and thesoftware, the foregoing has generally described compositions and stepsof each example according to functions. Whether the functions areperformed by hardware or software depends on particular applications anddesign constraint conditions of the technical solutions. A personskilled in the art may use different methods to implement the describedfunctions for each particular application, but it should not beconsidered that the implementation goes beyond the scope of the presentinvention.

It may be clearly understood by a person skilled in the art that, forthe purpose of convenient and brief description, for a detailed workingprocess of the foregoing system, apparatus, and unit, reference may bemade to a corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiments, anddetails are not described herein again.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, itshould be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus, and methodmay be implemented in other manners. For example, the describedapparatus embodiment is merely exemplary. For example, the unit divisionis merely logical function division and may be other division in actualimplementation. For example, a plurality of units or components may becombined or integrated into another system, or some features may beignored or not performed. In addition, the displayed or discussed mutualcouplings or direct couplings or communication connections may beimplemented through some interfaces. The indirect couplings orcommunication connections between the apparatuses or units may beimplemented in electronic, mechanical, or other forms.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physicallyseparate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units,may be located in one position, or may be distributed on a plurality ofnetwork units. A part or all of the units may be selected according toactual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of theembodiments of the present invention.

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the presentinvention may be integrated into one processing unit, or each of theunits may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integratedinto one unit. The integrated unit may be implemented in a form ofhardware, or may be implemented in a form of a software functional unit.

When the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a softwarefunctional unit and sold or used as an independent product, theintegrated unit may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.Based on such an understanding, the technical solutions of the presentinvention essentially, or the part contributing to the prior art, or allor a part of the technical solutions may be implemented in the form of asoftware product. The software product is stored in a storage medium andincludes several instructions for instructing a computer device (whichmay be a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to executeall or a part of the steps of the methods described in the embodimentsof the present invention. The foregoing storage medium includes: anymedium that can store program code, such as a USB flash drive, aremovable hard disk, a read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), arandom access memory (Random Access Memory, RAM), a magnetic disk, or anoptical disc.

The foregoing descriptions are merely specific embodiments of thepresent invention, but are not intended to limit the protection scope ofthe present invention. Any modification or replacement readily figuredout by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosedin the present invention shall fall within the protection scope of thepresent invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the presentinvention shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An access point handover method in wirelesscommunications, the method comprising: when user equipment is handedover to a target base station, obtaining access point (AP) informationof a target AP having an association relationship with the target basestation; and sending a first indication message to the user equipment,wherein the first indication message comprises the AP information, andthe first indication message is used to instruct the user equipment toperform AP handover according to the AP information.
 2. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising: determining a base stationtype of the target base station; and wherein sending a first indicationmessage to the user equipment comprises: when the base station type ofthe target base station is a micro base station, sending the firstindication message to the user equipment.
 3. The method according toclaim 1, wherein sending a first indication message to the userequipment comprises: sending the first indication message to the userequipment by using the target base station.
 4. The method according toclaim 1, wherein sending a first indication message to the userequipment comprises: when the user equipment maintains a communicationconnection to an AP from which the user equipment is handed over,sending the first indication message to the user equipment by using theAP from which the user equipment is handed over.
 5. The method accordingto claim 1, further comprising: sending a second indication message tothe AP from which the user equipment is handed over, wherein the secondindication message is used to instruct the AP, from which the userequipment is handed over, to send a communication key between the APfrom which the user equipment is handed over and the user equipment tothe target AP, so that the target AP establishes a communicationconnection to the user equipment according to the communication key. 6.An access point handover method in wireless communications, the methodcomprising: after being handed over to a target base station, receivinga first indication message sent by a network control node, wherein thefirst indication message is used to instruct user equipment to performaccess point (AP) handover, and the first indication message comprisesAP information of a target AP having an association relationship withthe target base station; and performing AP handover according to thefirst indication message.
 7. The method according to claim 6, whereinreceiving a first indication message sent by a network control nodecomprises: receiving the first indication message that is sent by thenetwork control node when a base station type of the target base stationis a micro base station.
 8. The method according to claim 6, whereinreceiving a first indication message sent by a network control nodecomprises: receiving the first indication message sent by the networkcontrol node by using the target base station.
 9. The method accordingto claim 6, wherein receiving a first indication message sent by anetwork control node comprises: when maintaining a communicationconnection to an AP from which the user equipment is handed over,receiving the first indication message sent by the network control nodeby using the AP from which the user equipment is handed over.
 10. Anetwork control node for use in a wireless communications network, thenetwork control node comprising: an obtaining module, configured to:when user equipment is handed over to a target base station, obtainaccess point (AP) information of a target AP having an associationrelationship with the target base station; and a first sending module,configured to send a first indication message to the user equipment,wherein the first indication message comprises the AP informationobtained by the obtaining module, and the first indication message isused to instruct the user equipment to perform AP handover according tothe AP information.
 11. The network control node according to claim 10,further comprising: a determining module, configured to determine a basestation type of the target base station; and wherein the first sendingmodule is configured to: when the determining module determines that thebase station type of the target base station is a micro base station,send the first indication message to the user equipment.
 12. The networkcontrol node according to claim 10, wherein the first sending module isconfigured to: send the first indication message to the user equipmentby using the target base station.
 13. The network control node accordingto claim 10, wherein the first sending module is configured to: when theuser equipment maintains a communication connection to an AP from whichthe user equipment is handed over, send the first indication message tothe user equipment by using the AP from which the user equipment ishanded over.
 14. The network control node according to claim 10, furthercomprising: a second sending module, configured to send a secondindication message to the AP from which the user equipment is handedover, wherein the second indication message is used to instruct the AP,from which the user equipment is handed over, to send a communicationkey between the AP from which the user equipment is handed over and theuser equipment to the target AP, so that the target AP establishes acommunication connection to the user equipment according to thecommunication key.
 15. User equipment, comprising: a receiving module,configured to: after the user equipment is handed over to a target basestation, receive a first indication message sent by a network controlnode, wherein the first indication message is used to instruct the userequipment to perform access point (AP) handover, and the firstindication message comprises AP information of a target AP having anassociation relationship with the target base station; and a handovermodule, configured to perform AP handover according to the firstindication message received by the receiving module.
 16. The userequipment according to claim 15, wherein the receiving module isconfigured to: receive the first indication message that is sent by thenetwork control node when a base station type of the target base stationis a micro base station.
 17. The user equipment according to claim 15,wherein the receiving module is configured to: receive the firstindication message sent by the network control node by using the targetbase station.
 18. The user equipment according to claim 15, wherein thereceiving module is configured to: when the user equipment maintains acommunication connection to an AP from which the user equipment ishanded over, receive the first indication message sent by the networkcontrol node by using the AP from which the user equipment is handedover.